After quite a long wait, they finally apprehended him. But, um, if this doesn’t sound super funny, I hope you won’t hold it against me.
A man who randomly attacked me while I was on my way to work two years ago was arrested on August 18. He was dealt with under Manhattan’s infamous Alvin Bragg.
Fortunately, he’s now behind bars at Riker’s Island. He reportedly attempted to sell drugs to an undercover officer right before getting caught. The bail was set at $200,000, which was handled by special drug prosecutor Bridget Brennan.
Kamieo Keynes, 36, a repeat offender with a long history of arrests, was the one who attacked me. It’s been frustrating, really—a whole two years without any closure, as the legal limits on my case were about to run out.
The only reason the police linked him to my attack was that they were actively pursuing him for drug offenses.
He was always their top suspect, or so an officer told me. I find myself wondering, like many victims before me in New York City, why it took so long to catch him.
I even snapped a photo of Keynes right after he hit me at Chambers Street and Broadway, just as we were passing each other around 10 am on August 8, 2023. I handed that picture to the detective.
His parole officer was able to confirm his identity post-attack. The only hiccup? I couldn’t pick him out in the photo lineup at the police station.
The police were looking for former convicts, but their hands were tied due to the bail friendly reforms.
The judge wouldn’t hold him for what they deemed a simple assault—it was just a misdemeanor. Since the Bail Reform Act of 2019, such crimes haven’t been subject to bail. And the police are all too aware of that.
Had the officers caught Keynes back then, he would have walked free. This revolving door situation is incredibly frustrating for law enforcement and, understandably, even more so for victims.
In a society where violent offenders can repeatedly attack people and roam freely for years? It’s maddening, really.
According to NYPD statistics, there have been 29,963 misdemeanor attacks like mine in the city this year alone, which is a slight drop from the previous year’s figures, but still a 37.5% increase from five years ago.
While I was away on vacation, I got a call from Bragg’s office about this case.
Keynes was apprehended at the intersection of 8th and West 35th Avenue after officers witnessed him selling drugs. When they searched him, they discovered 17 crack vials and seven bags of heroin. The police had been tracking him since November 2022 after he sold cocaine to an undercover officer.
Keynes has a troubling history—20 prior arrests for violent offenses, including assault and weapon possession.
He was previously convicted of a 2017 attack on two individuals at a subway station in Manhattan. That incident occurred just six blocks from where he attacked me.
Released from Collins Correctional Facility on January 18, 2022, his parole ended on April 29 this year.
During a recent court appearance, Keynes showed aggressive behavior, allegedly kicking another inmate in the head and spitting at EMS workers who were assisting him.
He even threatened to “kill everyone around him” during processing.
I reported my attack not just for myself but to prevent future incidents from happening to anyone else. Random street attacks seem all too common these days.
The punch left me winded and bruised, making reporting it feel essential.
I’ve secured a restraining order against him for a year, and Bragg’s office is assisting with victim services.
Having covered crime stories for over two decades, from shocking to simply heartbreaking, it’s striking how the conversation about random attacks has intensified since the bail reforms of 2019.
Since my incident, I’m hyper-aware of these occurrences.
New York really needs to step up. For me, and for all the people affected by crime in this city.
